The Survivors
by ErinacchiLove
Summary: Karsi survives the massacre at Hardhome thanks to Ygritte and her swift arrow.


So basically I found out that in the eighth episode a new cool character named Karsi is introduced - and she dies in the same episode (and is brought back as a wight). I haven't actually seen this episode yet - or any of the fifth season, but I just really felt like I had to fix this (big thanks to Tumblr for all the gifs about Karsi). And while I was at it I decided that Ygritte survived the Battle of Castle Black as well, just because I can. There are never enough badass female characters in the world.

I've no idea how canon compliant this fic is since I've only seen bits and pieces of the episode, but I hope it's readable anyway. Comments will be very appreciated :)

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Karsi froze in the middle of the battle – or a massacre, rather. She had seen her fair share of wights, and killed them too, but never anything like this. Those were children. Children who had been raised from the dead, attacking Hardhome. What could she do? Yes, the children were wights, and she knew she should have continued fighting, but she simply couldn't bring herself to move. The children moved forwards at her, their blue eyes gleaming. Karsi closed her eyes –

Something swished past her. Karsi opened her eyes again and saw an arrow struck in the middle of the head of one of the wight children, all of them halted in confusion.

"Come on!" urged Ygritte and shot another arrow. "These won't keep 'em long! Hurry!"

Karsi shook her head and ran to the docks with the red-headed woman. More and more wights kept coming as they climbed into the last remaining boat. The crow Ygritte had called Jon Snow, another crow, the giant Wun Wun, and Tormund arrived not long after them, all of them except the giant jumping in and shouting, "Row!" Ygritte had wrapped her arms around Karsi's shoulders and was now speaking to her in a low tone. Karsi wasn't sure what she was saying but her tone was soothing. The other crow, Karsi believed he'd been called Edd, started to row furiously away from the docks, away from Hardhome. Away from death.

Karsi's breathing was uneven. She wasn't crying, she was far too angry for that. "How could they?" she demanded from Ygritte. "How could they do that to children? How?!"

"'S okay now, we're safe for now," Ygritte replied, squeezing Karsi's shoulders. They were their backs at the docks so they were unable to see what was happening, but Karsi could hear how the giant marched past the boat and how the slaughtering continued. At least her daughters were safe, she thought, at least they had managed to get away.

Suddenly the boat started to slow down. Karsi looked up and saw Jon, Tormund, and Edd staring at something. "What?"

Ygritte too looked up and they both turned around when Tormund nodded at something. There, standing on the dock, was a White Walker. Completely bald with what seemed like horns in his head, gleaming blue eyes and a leathery armour. Karsi and Ygritte gasped almost simultaneously. Neither of them had ever seen anything alike. Wights, yes, they had seen plenty; a White Walker like this one, never before.

The White Walker stared at them and slowly raised his arms. Karsi's eyes widened as the dead started to move and rise.

"Oh, fuck," she heard Tormund grunt behind her. She couldn't have put it any better. Edd had started to row more furiously now, taking them closer to the ships anchored at the end of the bay. Jon and Tormund sat down and Karsi and Ygritte turned their backs to Hardhome. They all were shivering, more of terror rather than cold. Wun Wun was paddling before them as it wasn't deep enough for him to swim. He did not seem to be bothered by the cold.

"If I never see any of those creatures again it will be too soon," mumbled Edd as he kept rowing. Tormund had begun to help him. Karsi leaned against Ygritte's shoulder and tried to keep breathing. She only wanted to see her girls, nothing else mattered to her. From this distance she was able to see her folk climbing aboard those ships that belonged to what she had heard to be the Royal Fleet.

"Do you know where my girls are?" she asked, not from anyone specifically.

"No, there are so many ships," replied Jon. "But they are in one of them, trust me."

"It's been a while," Karsi sighed, "I've last been able to trust a crow."

Ygritte snorted what sounded like a laugh. "Jon Snow doesn't know much but you can trust him on this. At least so I think."

Karsi had long since figured that Ygritte and Jon had a past but hadn't pried. Now it became even clearer that there was something between them; unsolved feelings, unsettled disagreements, the sort. But none of that mattered to them now.

"Did anyone manage to bring the dragonglass?" asked Edd suddenly. Jon winced.

"I was trying to get them," he told them, "but that other White Walker attacked. I couldn't get the blades, there was no time."

Edd, Tormund, and Ygritte swore under their breaths. That had been most of their dragonglass, now lost to the White Walkers. They all knew Jon had done what he could but that didn't ease the loss of irreplaceable weapons. Jon's own sword wasn't simply enough against the White Walkers, as good as it was.

The boat reached the flag ship of the Royal Fleet. Wun Wun had already climbed aboard (thankfully the ship was able to carry him) and a rope ladder was descended for the last of the survivors. Ygritte helped Karsi stand and get aboard. The two women had hardly reached the deck when Karsi heard two voices she had so missed during this short time that had seemed like an eternity.

"Mama!"

"Mum!"

Now Karsi let herself cry freely as she wrapped her arms around her daughters and held them as if they were going to be taken away from her any moment. The girls were safe and sound, and that was all that mattered to her. She heard with half an ear Jon and Tormund talking to someone, and then Ygritte's hand on her shoulder again.

"Come on," the red-headed woman said with a small smile. "Let's get you all below the deck."

Karsi nodded, and with one girl in each armpit she followed Ygritte to a small cabin. It wasn't much, there were only two bunks and two chairs, but that was quite enough. Karsi settled down next to her daughters and looked at Ygritte again.

"Will you stay here?" she asked.

"Aye," replied Ygritte. "I'm gonna stay here the whole journey to the Wall. Me an' Tormund both. You'll be safe."

For now at least. Karsi looked at her daughters, lay down, closed her eyes and let sleep come to her.


End file.
